The Nexus Q is an odd little piece of hardware, filling a very small niche rather expensively. It could, however, turn out to be more useful than first thought, because a simple hack seems to bring it to life with the Android launcher, apps and as a result—you guessed it—Netflix.

Google unveiled its media-streaming glowing orb to many oohs and ahhs, followed by head-scratches.…
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In the xda-developers forums kornyone has explained how he's been able to ulock the device and install a launcher—CyanogenMod's Trebuchet to be precise. From there, he's been able to use an external USB mouse and keyboard to navigate Android and launch apps. It seems to work really quite nicely, spitting out 1080p images on to the guy's TV.

Perhaps most compelling is the resulting ability to use Netflix on the Q, a feature which seems to work really well if the video he posted is anything to go by. Elsewhere, he explains that Angry Birds, Google + and a bunch of other apps work perfectly from the off, and he was also able to get a browser up and running.

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Much of this is made possible by the inclusion of the USB port on the Q, and Google was enthusiastic to see what developers could do with the device when it was launched. It looks like the orb may yet turn out to be a rather neat little piece of kit. If you have one and are interested in modding it yourself, kornyone has posted instructions here. [XDA-Developers via Ubergizmo via Verge]